Community health workers direct Brockton patients to the services they need

Monday

Apr 29, 2013 at 12:01 AMApr 29, 2013 at 1:43 PM

Two young women are helping Brockton patients access the services at a community health center.

Silvana Vivas

Two young women are helping Brockton patients access services at a community health center.

Vania Jure, 23, and Akosua Mensah, 22, work at the Brockton Neighborhood Health Center as HealthCorps Navigators, a program funded by Partners HealthCare and the Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers.

The League has participated in the program since 2004, recruiting high school students, college graduates or the equivalent to serve for a year. The program is currently recruiting veterans.

Partners and the League contribute to the $356,000 that the HealthCorps Navigator program receives annually, a sum that is a combination of a federal grant and support from benefactors.

The Navigators – currently 16 at healthcare centers across the state – work with health center staff on projects that promote health education, patient access and developing fitness programs and nutrition tips under Community HealthCorps, an extension of AmeriCorps.

“This program benefits both the Navigators and the health centers,” said President and CEO of the League James W. Hunt Jr.

“The Navigators are a tremendous resource for the centers,” he added, “and the centers provide a hands-on learning environment for young people with an interest in community-based health care.”

The Navigators help fill in the gaps that doctors or nurse practitioners don’t necessarily have time to fill so patients get better overall care, said Matt Fishman, vice president for Community Health at Partners HealthCare.

Jure and Mensah help coordinate a number of programs that provide specific services for patients, Fishman said, including Reach Out and Read. Through this program, a child receives a free book when he or she is treated by a pediatrician.

“The kids come to associate the health center with a positive environment and getting cared for. The Navigators do things like order the books and make sure they are age-appropriate,” Fishman said.

Jure and Mensah are also in charge of coordinating patients’ appointments with specialists in other hospitals, and their transportation there, Fishman said.

The Navigators inform patients of the mammography van’s visits so they can be tested at their convenience. They also serve as liaisons between the hospital and other AmeriCorps volunteers so others hear about opportunities in the hospital.

“The Brockton center is unique in that I think there is a deep sense of engagement with community, and their approach to take care of patients,” Fishman said.

The Navigators get a sense of what it’s like to work in health care, Fishman said, and more than half of the participants in the overall program decide they want to work in the healthcare industry.

“The program is growing under the Affordable Care Act,” said Sue Joss, CEO of the Brockton Neighborhood Health Center. “There’s good evidence starting to emerge that this works, that the (Navigators) make things easier for patients.”

One of the key needs in Brockton is to help connect to the culture of the patients, even more so when the patient may not be fluent in English, said Alexandra Avedisian, supervisor of social services.

“Vania is a Brockton resident and speaks other languages, and communicates with patients who do not speak English,” Avedisian said.

“I’m Haitian and speak Haitian Creole. When a patient is struggling to communicate, and I tell them I (can speak their language), you can hear the relief in their voice,” Jure said.

Patient Eugenia Moore, 55, attended the group for her two chronic diseases, and said it was very informative.

“I thought I knew it all, but I was surprised to learn things about certain foods or how to breathe. The young ladies were really trained, and they offered to meet with us if we needed to,” Moore said.

The Navigators’ interaction with patients has motivated both of them to pursue social work after their AmeriCorps term ends in August.

“After seeing social workers help patients, I see they have this drive to always find resources for them” Mensah said.

Silvana Vivas may be reached at svivas@enterprisenews.com.

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